"I'm 63 and I'm Tired" by Robert A. Hall I'm 63. Except for one semester in college when jobs were scarce and a six-month period when I was between jobs, but job-hunting every day, I've worked hard since I was 18. Despite some health challenges, I still put in 50-hour weeks, and haven't called in sick in seven or eight years. I make a good salary, but I didn't inherit my job or my income, and I worked to get where I am. Given the economy, there's no retirement in sight, and I'm tired. Very tired. I'm tired of being told that I have to "spread the wealth" to people who don't have my work ethic. I'm tired of being told the government will take the money I earned, by force if necessary, and give it to people too lazy to earn it. I'm tired of being told that I have to pay more taxes to "keep people in their homes." Sure, if they lost their jobs or got sick, I'm willing to help. But if they bought McMansions at three times the price of our paid-off, $250,000 condo, on one-third of my salary, then let the left-wing Congress-critters who passed Fannie and Freddie and the Community Reinvestment Act that created the bubble help them with their own money. I'm tired of being told how bad America is by left-wing millionaires like Michael Moore, George Soros and Hollywood Entertainers who live in luxury because of the opportunities America offers. In thirty years, if they get their way, the United States will have the economy of Zimbabwe , the freedom of the press of China the crime and violence of Mexico , the tolerance for Christian people of Iran , and the freedom of speech of Venezuela . I'm tired of being told that Islam is a "Religion of Peace," when every day I can read dozens of stories of Muslim men killing their sisters, wives and daughters for their family "honor"; of Muslims rioting over some slight offense; of Muslims murdering Christian and Jews because they aren't "believers"; of Muslims burning schools for girls; of Muslims stoning teenage rape victims to death for "adultery"; of Muslims mutilating the genitals of little girls; all in the name of Allah, because the Qur'an and Shari'a law tells them to. I'm tired of being told that "race doesn't matter" in the post-racial world of Obama, when it's all that matters in affirmative action jobs, lower college admission and graduation standards for minorities (harming them the most), government contract set-asides, tolerance for the ghetto culture of violence and fatherless children that hurts minorities more than anyone, and in the appointment of U.S. Senators from Illinois. I think it's very cool that we have a black president and that a black child is doing her homework at the desk where Lincoln wrote the Emancipation Proclamation. I just wish the black president was Condi Rice, or someone who believes more in freedom and the individual and less arrogantly of an all-knowing government. I'm tired of a news media that thinks Bush's fundraising and inaugural expenses were obscene, but thinks that Obama's, at triple the cost, were wonderful; that thinks Bush exercising daily was a waste of presidential time, but Obama exercising is a great example for the public to control weight and stress; that picked over every line of Bush's military records, but never demanded that Kerry release his; that slammed Palin, with two years as governor, for being too inexperienced for VP, but touted Obama with three years as senator as potentially the best president ever. Wonder why people are dropping their subscriptions or switching to Fox News? Get a clue. I didn't vote for Bush in 2000, but the media and Kerry drove me to his camp in 2004. I'm tired of being told that out of "tolerance for other cultures" we must let Saudi Arabia use our oil money to fund mosques and mandrassa Islamic schools to preach hate in America , while no American group is allowed to fund a church, synagogue or religious school in Saudi Arabia to teach love and tolerance. I'm tired of being told I must lower my living standard to fight global warming, which no one is allowed to debate. My wife and I live in a two-bedroom apartment and carpool together five miles to our jobs. We also own a three-bedroom condo where our daughter and granddaughter live. Our carbon footprint is about 5% of Al Gore's, and if you're greener than Gore, you're green enough. I'm tired of being told that drug addicts have a disease, and I must help support and treat them, and pay for the damage they do. Did a giant germ rush out of a dark alley, grab them, and stuff white powder up their noses while they tried to fight it off? I don't think Gay people choose to be Gay, but I #@*# sure think druggies chose to take drugs. And I'm tired of harassment from cool people treating me like a freak when I tell them I never tried marijuana. I'm tired of illegal aliens being called "undocumented workers," especially the ones who aren't working, but are living on welfare or crime. What's next? Calling drug dealers, "Undocumented Pharmacists"? And, no, I'm not against Hispanics. Most of them are Catholic, and it's been a few hundred years since Catholics wanted to kill me for my religion. I'm willing to fast track for citizenship any Hispanic person, who can speak English, doesn't have a criminal record and who is self-supporting without family on welfare, or who serves honorably for three years in our military.... Those are the citizens we need. I'm tired of latte liberals and journalists, who would never wear the uniform of the Republic themselves, or let their entitlement-handicapped kids near a recruiting station, trashing our military. They and their kids can sit at home, never having to make split-second decisions under life and death circumstances, and bad mouth better people than themselves. Do bad things happen in war? You bet. Do our troops sometimes misbehave? Sure. Does this compare with the atrocities that were the policy of our enemies for the last fifty years and still are? Not even close. So here's the deal. I'll let myself be subjected to all the humiliation and abuse that was heaped on terrorists at Abu Ghraib or Gitmo, and the critics can let themselves be subject to captivity by the Muslims, who tortured and beheaded Daniel Pearl in Pakistan, or the Muslims who tortured and murdered Marine Lt. Col. William Higgins in Lebanon, or the Muslims who ran the blood-spattered Al Qaeda torture rooms our troops found in Iraq, or the Muslims who cut off the heads of schoolgirls in Indonesia, because the girls were Christian. Then we'll compare notes. British and American soldiers are the only troops in history that civilians came to for help and handouts, instead of hiding from in fear. I'm tired of people telling me that their party has a corner on virtue and the other party has a corner on corruption. Read the papers; bums are bipartisan. And I'm tired of people telling me we need bipartisanship. I live in Illinois , where the "Illinois Combine" of Democrats has worked to loot the public for years. Not to mention the tax cheats in Obama's cabinet. I'm tired of hearing wealthy athletes, entertainers and politicians of both parties talking about innocent mistakes, stupid mistakes or youthful mistakes, when we all know they think their only mistake was getting caught. I'm tired of people with a sense of entitlement, rich or poor. Speaking of poor, I'm tired of hearing people with air-conditioned homes, color TVs and two cars called poor. The majority of Americans didn't have that in 1970, but we didn't know we were "poor." The poverty pimps have to keep changing the definition of poor to keep the dollars flowing. I'm real tired of people who don't take responsibility for their lives and actions. I'm tired of hearing them blame the government, or discrimination or big-whatever for their problems. Yes, I'm #@*% tired. But I'm also glad to be 63. Because, mostly, I'm not going to have to see the world these people are making. I'm just sorry for my granddaughter.
I'm tired of lazy people who cut and paste factually incorrect drivel they found on the Internet. I'm also tired of bigots who masquarade as patriots. And I'm also tired of idiots who in the tradition of Limbaugh and Olberman blame this country's problems on liberals or conservatives.
I saw this before like five years ago when the individual 'bad non-stupid' names were different, I bet. I didn't read past the first sentence--someone want to summarize, or is it another made-up bad-Democrats, Amurika Fuck-Yeah! thing?
I'm tired of over edjumakated liberal lawyers getting all pissing and holding their breath and stomping their feet every time they read something that they don't like or that rips at the demi-crats. Not saying that ever happens here <cough, rhymes with spoil, cough> but . . .
Surely you leftists can come up with something other than rolling your eyes and spouting stereotypes I mean with all his money and media power can't Ted Turner right how he wants the UN to control things, or with his genius AlGore should be able to explain things to us little people. Oh wait when they are honest the American people reject them (well except niche areas like San Fran, Ann Arbor, etc.) Oh well off to the last day at work. Now up unemployment to 200 weeks
It's not for you to get, sucko. It's there for one person to get and I think he held his breathe too long, passed out and hit his head on the coffee table.
Given where i usually post from on weekday mornings, the impact zone would have included a lot of porcelain.
I'm just tired, like Lilly vonSchtup. Hey Gianni, let's see if this helps...fill in the blank: "O'________ Rules!" But seriously folks, it's all gonna be alright. Kumbaya and shit.
Doyle, I think that I am independent enough from party and/or personalities to agree with the jist of the copy & paste by the original article (I don't care how many times it has been posted or where/when it was orginated). Forget about politics right now, for a moment. I am 41, and I am f'ing exhausted. I have said it before on previous posts, I don't know if I should keep this up. I don't think that my efforts are warranted anymore. I know one thing, I am not some kind of special. What I happen to enjoy today is a consequence of the choices that I have made after careful evaluation. Just as I know what the few things in life that I feel that are missing or better said, that I thought I really wanted early in my youth, are also a direct result of my choices. I don't mind helping people but I should not be expected to carry any dead weight. I don't understand poor in a place where freedom, and opportunity is afforded to everyone. Where I am going wrong?
If you found $1000 on the sidewalk, would you pick it up and plan a par-tee or would you go to the cops and report it trying to find the owner? How you answer this question defines the problem with our society. We have so much and we try very hard to help those in need...HOWEVER... we are totally ineffective at managing all the programs as they were initially intended. The result is VAST amounts of "free" money are left lying around to be picked up. Those with low moral standards approach the issue from the "why not?" direction. Others see the the issue as "this wasn't meant for me". Eventually the moral standard will default to the "why nots" until we are bankrupt and the land-of-plenty is no more. This is happening right now before our very eyes. I am curious to see if there enough moral backbone left in the country to correct the course we are on...or if we are doomed....
